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Residents rally to oppose tax proposals

BOBBY ARDOIN, Special to the Daily World
Published 3:32 p.m. CT Feb. 28, 2018

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Richard Lucito makes his way to the podium to speak at a public forum on the upcoming tax proposals for the St. Landry Parish School Board. The forum was held to a standing room only audience Tuesday njght at Toby’s Reception Center in Opelousas.(Photo: Freddie Herpin/Daily World)Buy Photo

Those speaking at the brief meeting expressed distrust about how the district will spend revenues amounting up to $7 million over the next 10 years for salaries, and $99 million spread over 20 years for capital improvements.

No school officials addressed the crowd.

Krotz Springs resident Woody Wiltz said he is initiating an effort to place anti-proposition signs throughout the parish. Wiltz said he thinks parish residents already pay enough in sales and property taxes parish wide without adding another millage.

Richard Lucito, who lives in Opelousas, said he is not opposed “in general” to the tax propositions, which become effective only if both win approval.

“I just don’t think we should have a tax without having a (district-wide) plan. When you go to these presentations, you hear different things,” he said.

Lucito said the district’s effort to develop a plan have, for him, lacked the necessary transparency to convince him to favor the proposition.

The propositions, said Lucito, will increase what home owners now pay in school millage. He said the district now collects 20.52 mills annually. If passed, the two propositions on the March ballot would increase that amount by 23.4 mills (11.3 mills for the raises and 12.1 for the capital outlay effort).

Washington Mayor Joseph Pitre said the town will probably face the closure of Washington Elementary School, according to the capital improvement discussions that board members have had beginning in November.

Pitre said that just weeks before the election, the district still does not have a definite capital outlay proposal to present to voters.

“There is no set plan. I’ve already seen four or five plans at the meetings. This is being done to pull the wool over people’s eyes. It’s also been placed on the same day as the Fire District 3 tax,” Pitre said.

The fire district’s proposed millage calls for an additional 10 mills over the next five years to pay for equipment upgrades, station maintenance and possibly salaries for firefighter, according to assistant chief Matthew Rabalais.

Pitre said voters should demand more accountability from school officials about how and where the money included in the propositions will be spent.

“What I’m saying is you need to step up to the plate and demand accountability. There’s enough left in the (school) system if you cut the pork bellies to fix what we need to,” Pitre said.

At the several community meetings held at parish public high schools since January, St. Landry School Superintendent Patrick Jenkins has said the parish’s teachers need raises in order to lift their beginning salaries more than the current $38,000 annually.

Those raises, Jenkins has said, would enable the district to perhaps become more competitive with other parishes for first-year teaching talent.

Jenkins has also told those attending the meetings that the district has antiquated school buildings that are in need to renovation or in some cases, demolition and reconstruction.

Since November, school officials including board members have convened several meetings to discuss plans for facilities improvements, based on information they have received in a parish wide assessment of campuses and a demographic study that highlights population trends within St. Landry.

In his presentations, Jenkins has pointed out that the St. Landry School District ranks in the bottom third statewide in annual school millage collections.

At Tuesday’s meeting, some of the organizers pointed to the demographic study which predicts the public school district could lose as many as 900 students by 2023, due to outward migration.